The road to mortgage success isn’t exactly straight forward. In fact, when you first signed up to be a mortgage professional, you probably thought that you’d spend most of your day writing mortgages when, in reality, most of your time is dedicated to finding quality leads.
But what makes a lead “quality” and where can you find them so you spend less time and resources chasing dead ends? That’s what this article is all about:
Where to Find Quality Mortgage Leads
So let’s begin by correctly defining what makes a mortgage lead “quality.” Most will define “quality” as:
- Whether the prospect has consistent & verifiable income
- Good credit history and credit score
- Desirable debt-to-income ratio
- Have enough for downpayment and closing costs.
- Is looking to close within the next 14-90 days?
While all good points, the above represents a very narrow window of what “qualifies” a mortgage lead.
The Missing Ingredient to Qualify A Mortgage Lead
An individual can have all of those desirable factors, but without intent, they aren’t truly a quality mortgage lead.
That’s right! The secret to knowing whether a lead is qualified or not is knowing their intent. And correctly identifying their intent is also what’s going to help you get more qualified leads.
How Using Intent To Qualify Leads Works
Using intent to qualify a lead is based mainly on two concepts: sifting out those without it and attracting more of those with it. Lead capture forms are the most popular way to sift out those without intent. That’s what makes buying leads so attractive –a person who’s filled out a lead capture form has demonstrated the intent.
But that’s only part of the story.
After all, if all it took was a filled lead capture form to determine intent, more of your paid leads would turn into loans. That’s where the attraction comes in. That is, attracting more prospects that have both those desirable characteristics plus a strong intent to close a loan within the next three months.
Attracting More Quality Leads with Intent
The first thing about attracting “intent” is to understand “why” not “what.” So instead of asking what sort of mortgage the prospect might need, ask why are they looking for a mortgage.
Why that particular mortgage product?
Why they clicked onto that particular webpage on your site?
Why they are interested in cash-out loan products?
By asking “why,” you’ll have a much clearer picture of what motivates your prospect (intent) and build a strategy (attract) that revolves around converting quality mortgage leads.
Finding answers to their “why” questions will require research on your part. We’ve written several articles that have dug deep into some of these questions. You can also check out sites like Quora or Lender 411 where users ask questions.
And be sure to review published industry studies like those that Realtor.com and EllieMae.com
Remember also to use your own experience to answer those questions!
Sometimes we already know the answers to our prospect’s behavior; it was just a matter of asking the right questions to know how to wield the expertise.
The Strategy for Using Intent to Gain More Mortgage Leads.
Armed with the right question, the answers, and the understanding of “intent,” it’s time to put it into action for attracting more qualified leads by improving your marketing tactics.
Content Strategy for Qualified Mortgage Leads
By gaining insight into their intent, you can now understand where they are in the mortgage journey and create the right piece of content that gives them an extra push to apply for a loan.
For example, a prospect with intent to learn about getting a mortgage may search “how to get a mortgage.”
But a qualified prospect will look for something more specific like, “mortgage programs for first time home buyers that are teachers” See the difference? Qualified prospects with high intentions tend to ask more specific questions, and it’s your job to figure out why they are asking that question and design a piece of content for it.
Now let’s tie that in with mortgage keyword optimization.
Keywords for Quality Mortgage Leads
Understanding your prospect’s intent also helps to determine the best SEO keywords to use as well as the right content to use for the mortgage journey. By cross-referencing the prospect’s intent and keyword opportunities, you can create pieces of content specific to where they are in their journey.
Hint: Google keyword planner is a free tool where you can research and plan mortgage keywords. Remember to utilize the location settings!
If you’re also using keywords for paid ads, utilize your understanding of intent to determine the sweet spot that combines (1) relevent long-tail keywords with (2) location, and (3) low-cost-per-click.
Copywriting for Quality Mortgage Leads
Knowing intent for writing SEO content isn’t the only way to use this insight. Use your prospect’s intent to know which writing style works best! Knowing the lingo they use, the level of knowledge of mortgage terms, and what situations are more relatable to them all help to tap into their motivation –making it extremely attractive for these quality leads to convert into loans.
We’re you surprised at the answer of where to find more quality mortgage leads?
You may also be surprised at how essential user experience is to the mortgage journey too! Read more about closing more loans by leveraging the mortgage journey and contact use for a free live demo of Loanzify, the mortgage point-of-sale system you’ve been searching for.
